Norwalk Dems elect 55 members to Democratic Town Committee

By ROBERT KOCHHour Staff Writer

Published 6:02 pm, Wednesday, January 6, 2016

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Hour photos/Danielle Calloway

Above, Toni Parlanti and her son, Mike, vote for the Democrats competing for 11 District A seats on the Norwalk Democratic Town Committee during caucus Wednesday at Kendall School. Below, Hazel Lepotsky casts her vote.

Tod Bryant adjusts the ballot box for the District A Democrats competing for 11 seats on the Norwalk Democratic Town Committee during caucus Wednesday at Kendall School.

Hour Photo / Danielle Calloway

Tod Bryant adjusts the ballot box for the District A Democrats competing for 11 seats on the Norwalk Democratic Town Committee during caucus Wednesday at Kendall School.

Hour Photo / Danielle Calloway

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Khadijat Bgenro signs in voters for the District A Democrats competing for 11 seats on the Norwalk Democratic Town Committee during caucus Wednesday at Kendall School.

Hour Photo / Danielle Calloway

Khadijat Bgenro signs in voters for the District A Democrats competing for 11 seats on the Norwalk Democratic Town Committee during caucus Wednesday at Kendall School.

Hour Photo / Danielle Calloway

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Hazel Lepotsky votes for the District A Democrats competing for 11 seats on the Norwalk Democratic Town Committee during caucus Wednesday at Kendall School.

Hour Photo / Danielle Calloway

Hazel Lepotsky votes for the District A Democrats competing for 11 seats on the Norwalk Democratic Town Committee during caucus Wednesday at Kendall School.

Hour Photo / Danielle Calloway

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Norwalk Dems elect 55 members to Democratic Town Committee

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NORWALK -- Steve Serasis edged out fellow incumbent Carolyn Fuller on Wednesday evening in the race for 11 District A seats on the new 55-member Norwalk Democratic Town Committee (DTC).

"Carolyn and Steve were very close. We recounted and Steve had two more votes than Carolyn for the last position," Stuart W. Wells, the city's Democratic registrar of voters, said after the recount.

Thirteen candidates competed for the 11 seats in District A with Fuller and fellow incumbent Rosa Murray coming up short. Overall, 56 registered Democrats voted at the caucus at Kendall Elementary School, Wells said.

"One of the biggest things in Connecticut is young people leaving (the state) and that's because the young people aren't involved," said Jalin Sead, who lost his bid for a Common Council seat last year but won a District A seat on the DTC Wednesday evening. "This is to show young people that they can get involved but also because I think people need to be represented.

On Wednesday evening, registered Democrats cast ballots across Norwalk as part of caucuses to determine who sits upon the expanded DTC for the next two years.

Fifty-five seats were up for grabs, or 11 in each of Norwalk's five districts. Competition existed at three of the caucuses (Districts A, C and D) where more than 11 candidates put their names in the running.

Toni and Mike Parlanti, mother and son, were among the registered Democrats who voted at the District A caucus in the library of Kendall Elementary.

"It's important to support what goes on in Norwalk. I'm a baseball coach in Norwalk. I coach Norwalk Junior Legion. Every decision matters," Mike Parlanti said. "To support that and to support the people that you want here is important to us."

The caucuses opened at 7:30 p.m. and remained open until 9 p.m. provided competition existed.

"We've got 13 great candidates," said Andrew S. Garfunkel, District A caucus chairman and the city's former town clerk, as voting proceeded. "No matter who wins, we'll have a great slate."

Last April, DTC members amended their bylaws, expanding the size of the committee from 35 to 55 people.

Tod Bryant, who helped check voters' names against the list of registered Democrats at the District A caucus, was holding his verdict on the larger committee.

"I haven't really been involved with it enough to understand what the dynamic is, so I don't know whether that's good or bad," Bryant said. "You would think more is better just because it gets more voices, but it can also be contentious so I don't know."

Norwalk DTC Chairman Edwin Camacho was at the District C caucus at Nathan Hale Middle School where turnout was heavy and counting concluded after 10 p.m.

There, 15 candidates vied for 11 seats. Adonis Filpo, John Metsopoulos, Beth Siegelbaum and Douglas Stern were the four candidates who lost, according to John Kydes.

In District D, 14 candidates vied for 11 seats with Anthony Ditrio, Lynne Moore and Roma Stibray coming up short, according to Bruce I. Kimmel.

"Things were pretty amicable in District D. We had 14 people but I don't think there will be any primaries," said Kimmel, who was elected to one of the 11 seats. "It was a nice, healthy competition."

Candidates who lost have the option of collecting signatures to force primary elections on March 1.

In District B, 11 candidates vied for 11 seats after 10 other candidates withdrew their names earlier in the week. Likewise, 11 candidates vied for 11 seats and were elected without competition in District E.